Meta is making a major bet on humanoid robots, setting up a dedicated team inside Reality Labs led by former Cruise CEO Marc Whitten. Instead of rushing to sell its own branded bot, Meta wants to build the underlying AI, sensor, and software platform using Llama to power third-party hardware, with talks already underway with Figure AI and Unitree.
Researchers just unveiled an intelligent heating jacket powered by AI and color-changing fibers to prevent overheating and burns. Trained on data from 50 subjects, the AI dynamically predicts a wearer's ideal temperature in varying weather, while visual fiber cues signal heat levels. It could be a major safety upgrade for elderly care.
Iran’s Ministry of Defense just published footage showing what it claims is the first submarine-launched autonomous suicide drone, dubbed Hadid 110. The loitering munition relies on onboard AI image recognition to identify and strike targets without radio links or manual guidance, making underwater launches harder to detect and jam.
Microsoft and defense tech firm Anduril just expanded their partnership to drive the next phase of the U.S. Army's IVAS program. Anduril will take charge of future hardware and software development alongside production, while Microsoft Azure will serve as the preferred cloud for related AI workloads. Bringing Palmer Luckey's team onboard gives Microsoft an experienced hardware partner to revitalize its high-profile military headset contract.
Lyft is teaming up with Intel's Mobileye and Japanese conglomerate Marubeni to launch a robotaxi fleet in Dallas as soon as 2026. The ridehail platform is sticking to an asset-light playbook, letting Marubeni own and manage the cars while Mobileye supplies the self-driving tech, all in a bid to keep pace with Uber.
Apple engineers just built an expressive robotic desk lamp straight out of a Pixar film. Equipped with cameras, microphones, and tiny motors, the prototype responds to hand gestures, grooves to music, and even peeks out the window before answering weather questions.
South Korea’s ETRI just developed an AI-powered sensor that distinguishes real fire smoke from harmless cooking fumes and dust. By measuring how light scatters across different wavelengths, the AI identifies non-fire particles to prevent nuisance alarms. The team plans to deploy it in aspirating smoke detectors first.
Researchers just introduced ASAP, a two-stage framework that bridges the sim-to-real physics gap for humanoid robots. By pairing simulated pre-training with a real-world residual action model, the team demonstrated agile whole-body skills on a Unitree G1 robot with significantly reduced tracking errors. Why it matters: It offers a practical path to dynamic robot agility without manual parameter tuning.
Meta is preparing a major wearables push for 2025, working on sports-focused Oakley smart glasses and a high-end pair with a built-in lens display dubbed Hypernova. The company is also exploring camera-equipped earbuds and smartwatches, aiming to weave its AI into more everyday hardware.
Wyze just launched Cam Unlimited Pro, a new subscription tier that turns vague security notifications into detailed AI summaries. Instead of generic alerts like "pet detected," users now get specific play-by-plays like a small dog playing with a tennis ball, alongside natural-language video search.
Sony just revealed new patents exploring how AI can predict player movements to reduce online gaming lag. Using a camera to track player behavior and anticipate inputs, the company is also looking into AI to catch cheaters and detect player frustration. It is still on paper, but it hints at how PlayStation might tackle latency.
Israeli startup FireDome has developed an off-grid wildfire defense system inspired by Israel's Iron Dome. The setup combines AI cameras with a mechanical launcher that fires eco-friendly retardant capsules up to a quarter-mile away when flames are detected. Field tests are scheduled to begin in May 2025.
OpenAI is officially getting into physical hardware. Robotics hardware lead Caitlin Kalinowski just posted openings for the company’s first hardware-focused roles, recruiting senior sensing engineers, mechanical designers, and a TPM manager to set up a new training lab. OpenAI isn't content with just supplying the AI brains; it wants to build the bodies too.
Startup Satellai just unveiled the Satellai Dog Tracker, combining AI and satellite connectivity to track pets in remote areas without cellular coverage. Powered by Qualcomm's 9205S modem and Skylo's NTN network, it lets owners map virtual boundaries even deep off-grid.
Philips Hue just announced an upcoming generative AI lighting assistant arriving in the first quarter of 2025. Users can simply type or speak prompts like "Give me a scene for a garden party" to generate custom color palettes or adjust existing fixtures. The feature will be compatible with all Philips Hue smart lights.
Samsung just teamed up with Instacart to turn its 2025 Bespoke smart fridges into automated grocery restock hubs. Powered by AI Vision Inside food recognition, users can order missing groceries right from the fridge screen for same-day delivery. Existing AI Family Hub+ units will also receive the feature via network firmware updates in 2025.
Nvidia just unveiled Mega at CES, an Omniverse blueprint designed to test and optimize physical AI and industrial robot fleets in digital twins before real-world deployment. It combines Isaac robotics and Omniverse sensor simulation, allowing operators like KION Group to simulate infinite warehouse scenarios. Why it matters: Bringing software-defined simulation to physical factories finally lets logistics scale without trial-and-error downtime.
Nvidia just unveiled Project Digits at CES 2025, a $3,000 personal AI supercomputer powered by its new GB10 Grace Blackwell Superchip. The compact workstation packs 128GB of memory, letting researchers and developers run models with up to 200 billion parameters right on their desks—or link two together for 405-billion-parameter beasts. It begins shipping in May.
NVIDIA just opened early access for its Omniverse Sensor RTX APIs, targeting AV and robotics developers. The tool simulates physically accurate data for cameras, radar, and lidar, letting teams safely generate rare edge cases without risking real-world hardware. Partners like Accenture, Foretellix, and Nuro are already plugging it into their testing pipelines.
NVIDIA just unveiled Cosmos at CES, a platform of open generative world foundation models designed for physical AI like autonomous vehicles and robots. Built into its three-computer AV pipeline, Cosmos turns thousands of human-driven miles into billions of synthetic driving miles to stress-test edge cases. The models are already available under an open license.
